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Instruction: Summarize the civil war.

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The American Civil War was a conflict that took place from 1861 to 1865 between the Union (Northern states) and the Confederacy (Southern states) in the United States. The war was rooted in the debate over slavery and states rights, with the Union wanting a unified country and the Confederacy wanting to maintain slavery and a loose association of states. After four years of bitter fighting and the death of over 600,000 people, the Union emerged victorious, abolishing slavery and reestablishing the Union.